Assessment of Seed Characteristics in Sage (Salvia fruticosa Mill.) Populations

Salvia fruticosa Mill. is a high-value aromatic perennial widely utilized in the pharmaceutical and food industries due to its potent essential oil profile and secondary metabolites. Despite its economic importance, the influence of environmental gradients on the physical seed characteristics of wild populations remains poorly understood. This study aimed to characterize the morphological and physical attributes of S. fruticosa seeds collected from 25 distinct wild populations across Denizli province, Türkiye, and to evaluate the impact of altitude and topographical factors on these traits. Physical parameters, including length, width, thickness, geometric mean diameter, sphericity, surface area, and thousand-seed weight, were systematically measured. Statistical analysis revealed significant morphological divergence among locations (P